An Italian regulatory body issued a €5.85 million fine to Meta

The Italian Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (AGCOM) has imposed a fine on Meta, the social media giant that owns Facebook and Instagram. The company must pay a fine of 5.85 million euros for violating the country’s laws regarding gambling advertising.

Fine for betting and gaming ads

The state has decided to issue a fine to the industry giant, which is clearly a major escalation when it comes to enforcing the laws and regulatory measures recently issued by the state.

AGCOM I found various betting and gaming promotional content advertised on 13 Facebook profiles and five Instagram accounts, 18 in total. Since all of Facebook And Instagram Owned by the same company, deadThe company was fined.

But that’s not all, further investigations have revealed 32 visual posts, whether video or images, that advertise betting and gaming activities. Since meta provides different Advertising services It is not just a platform to display your content, it is responsible for the violation.

AGCOM stated that the company is aware of the fact that betting and gambling advertisements exist illegalBut despite this, I agreed to the problematic ads.

In total, 18 accounts were flagged, but according to AGCOM, Meta is responsible for only five of them. After AGCOM reported the problematic ads, the company Take action to stop ads And correct the issue. Also, after the regulator flagged the account, Meta banned 11 of them.

But all these steps were not enough, as the company had to do this Pay a fine In any case. Aside from the penalty, Meta received a formal notice and order to remove all ads in question.

Strict rules

Italy has strict rules when it comes to regulation Problem gambling and gambling addiction. Back in July 2018, the state issued a Dignity Decreea decree that helped prevent and solve problems related to the subject, and Meta violated this decree.

According to the document, all forms of betting and gambling advertising on social media and other media, such as sports team jerseys, stadiums and other media platforms, are prohibited.

Meta isn’t the only company recently fined for betting and gaming ads. both of them Youtube And twitch She was fined this month. AGCOM issued a fine of 2.5 million euros To YouTube, Twitch had to pay 900,000 euros for similar violations.

European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) does not agree with strict Italian rules because they can push companies to grow rapidly Foreign market.

source: Hoge, Leah, “Meta has been fined by the Italian regulatory authority for violating gambling advertising.”. sigma. January 2, 2024.